Cost: $30 for non-museum members; $25 for members, $10 for kids ages 6 to 16; free for kids under 5

Visit: aviationmuseumofnh.org

Good plane funFly-in event returns to Nashua Airport

06/09/16

Several New Hampshire pilots will stop at Hangar 81 at the Nashua Airport to display their planes during the Aviation Museum of New Hampshire’s annual Fly-in and Barbecue on Saturday, June 11.

More than an aviation experience, the event could also feature antique cars, trains and motorcycles.

“People can bring whatever they want and come and put it on display,” said Wendell Berthelsen, director of operations at the Aviation Museum of New Hampshire in Londonderry. “You know, we’ve been doing this for 10 to 15 years at least, and we’ve seen crew railroad cars here, we’ve had older cars here, and motorcycles have occasionally been on display as well. We’ve had Jeeps in the past, and we’ve also had helicopters in the past, so part of the fun is that you never know what you’re going to see until the day of the event.”

A barbecue lunch from Celebrations Catering in Nashua will be served at noon, and there will be raffle prizes as well. The main attraction, though, is the fly-in.

“It’s a fun event, because you get to be up close to the pilot and you get to see what the plane looks like,” Berthelsen said.

The fly-in is one of several aviation-themed events and programs the museum hosts across New Hampshire, Berthelsen said.

“The museum is where we have most of our programs going on. We’ve got a program called Virtual Skies for example; it’s an aviation education course that we offer to high school students who get credit for it,” Berthelsen said.

He said the museum often holds events on Saturdays. It recently hosted a presentation on Alan Shepard that went very well, he said.

“You know, our goal is to engage the public and teach and inspire, so that’s what we are looking to do related to aviation,” Berthelsen said. “We open up the runway here at the museum, and we always have exhibits going on that give people hands-on demonstration about the fabric of airplanes.”

Museum attractions include a Granville Brothers exhibit and an Albert Read exhibit. Originally from the New Hampshire town of Lyme, Read is known as the first aviator to ever fly in a transatlantic airplane back in 1919 as a Lieutenant Commander of the U.S. Naval Academy.

“We’ve also got a cockpit replica exhibit for kids, so they can sit in and see what the pilot seats and controls and instruments look like as if it were a real plane,” Berthelsen said. “We’ve got several engines on display, including a jet engine from GE, and flight simulators and pylon racing simulators as well.”

Saturday’s fly-in will be held at 83 Perimeter Road in Nashua. Pre-registration is preferred, but tickets can be purchased on the day of, with food and raffle participation included in the price of admission.